Safe Searching with Kid Rex

Kid Rex is a safe search engine designed for children and their parents. ( click here )  It is powered by Google Custom Search and Google Safe Search and offers similar features to a Google search but with filters for child friendly results.

To Set as a homepage on your computer, please follow the link on Kid Rex at the bottom of the homepage where it says PARENTS or (click here)   

For iPads, open Kid Rex (www.kidrex.com) through Safari or Chrome web browsers on the iPad. Choose the send icon and ADD TO HOME SCREEN. Then the icon will appear on the home screen of the iPad as an icon which can be opened easily. 

Of course, no search engine filtering is 100% accurate. There is no substitute for adult monitoring of the use of devices, especially when children are doing searches (in particular IMAGE searches). This, along with a shared understanding between children and adults about responsible online behavior and internet safety is crucial. Both Kid Rex and Common Sense Media address these topics and provide parent guidelines to help you support your child as they engage in using technology.

The key is to be a partner in your child's online and device use. Use this as an opportunity to engage with your child and share new information and ideas that have come up as they use their device. Guide them to be responsible users and consumers of online data by having open discussions about the opportunities as well as the possible threats that online behavior can have.

Born to Learn

This 5 minute video from the 21st Century Initiative shows what recent research tells us about the capacity to learn through play and inquiry which we are born with. This capacity must be nurtured so that children can learn. It goes on to show the physiological need for adolescents to rebel and that, once again, this should be nurtured. Rebellion as an adolescent is a normal stage in the development of the brain, but rebelling within a safe and nurturing environment is crucial.

How can we nurture the curiosity and normal brain development of our children? 

How Will We Prepare Our Children For the Future?

 The term 21st Century Skills  has become popular in educational discussions. It is clear that the world as we know it today is very different than the world we grew up in. Any generation can say that.
Sociologist have defined the years 1970 to the present as The Information or Digital Age. This can be defined as a time period in which large amounts of information was available mostly through technology.
Prior to that, western cultures were involved in the Post-Industrial Era which spanned close to 100 years (1890-1980). Schools were created as a response to the Industrial Revolution and mimicked the factory model of an assembly line where each child was placed in a grade level according to their age and expected to master specific skills and knowledge deemed necessary at that age.

Since the mid-1970's, education has been going through a shift, a change that has never before been seen; from teacher-centered to child-centered. From giving knowledge to finding information.

Our world is changing, education is changing. The future holds unforeseen changes. How will we prepare our children for the future that we cannot even see?

Below is a video called; Learning to Change - Changing to Learn. In it, educators and other leaders of future oriented businesses speak about our responsibility to prepare our children for the future. It is reposted from January 24, 2014 and is worth another look.

The 21st Century Skills are what is commonly referred to as, "soft skills" meaning, skills that are personal attributes which enhance a person's performance as opposed to "hard skills" which are specific to a task, such as kicking a ball, calculating using an algorithm, singing...

The above video is called, Rethinking Learning. Another thought provoking look at what educators say should be the focus for education today and in the future.

The ISTE (International Society of Technology Education) lists 21st century skills as: creativity, collaboration, communication, problem solving and  digital and information literacy. These have been put into NETS Standards which need to be taught as well as focused on in order to prepare children for the future.

How will we prepare our children for the future?

Growl Media and Appy Kids for learning Arabic

This week I had the pleasure of meeting Dolly, a representative from Growl Media, a Dubai-based website company which creates FREE apps for iPad and Android tablets. These apps are for  language learning, specifically Arabic, Hindi and English. They are fantastic apps, with interactive components and beautiful graphics.

 This is their award winning app called, Alfie, Haathi and the Magic Bioscope in both Arabic and English.

 

Check out their website and parent blog.
Growl Media website: click here
Appy Kids Parent Blog and website: click here

Online Safety, a Parent's Guide

The latest issue of the local magazine, 999; Security and Safety For All, (October, 2014) has an article about how to support your child as they manoeuvre through the online world through social media apps.
The article mentions studies done by such organizations as Ofcom which have studied the usage of social media by age group. It also reviews certain social media apps which need to be monitored by parents due to their content and features.  The article has interviewed local and global experts about advice for parents as their children engage in the online world and supports the view that parents need to be vigilant about  what apps their child is using and to not be afraid of creating limits. After all, as a parent and guardian, it is your right to control your child's use of technology. But it is also your duty to be informed about the latest Apps and Social Media platforms so you can also advise and guide your child. Just saying no is not always the nest way to approach these situations. Looking into the Social Media app, doing some research about it, then discussing it with your child so they understand the dangers as well as the opportunities is key.

New Primary Website and Class Sites

Raha Primary School has some new ways to communicate with parents.

1.) Primary Website for parents (click here) is the first place to look for information about RIS Primary School. On this site you will find your children's grade level Google Sites.

Bookmark this site on your home computer or tablet for easy reference.

2.) Grade Level Google Sites have links found in the Primary Website for Parents. When you open the Primary Website, click on the tab in the sidebar which will take you to the class page. On this page you will find the Grade Level website. 

Bookmark these grade level sites on your home computer or tablet for easy reference.